Is there any reason not to get a smart meter?

[MrsPelligrinoPetrichor]

Just been offered one by our power company, it would be a lot easier than taking meter readings as the current meter is at the back of the garage and I can't get to it at all so I have to get dh to take a reading.

My dad is very anti them, not sure why...

I am against them with a passion.
When they've been somewhere where I've been staying and we had one and it screams red at you because the washing machine is on I get anxious. To the extent I spent 6 months charging my phone and laptop and anything I could exclusively out of the flat. Also why have something plugged in 24/7, often in an inconvenient location, just to send meter readings? Also we used to have to send a reading manually anyways because the damn thing didn't work.

We had a smart meter installed a few years ago by our energy company then I changed providers and was told the new company would not get access the smart meter and I'd have to go back to manual readings. I've thought they are pointless ever since.

Most of the problems stem from the first generation meters I had one fitted and when the tariff changed the meter stayed the same because they couldn’t amend the software every time I changed tariff, then I changed supplier and they cannot connect to it so a pointless cash cow exercise for the suppliers who get paid by the government to install them, however the new generation meters shouldn’t have these problems and you should be able to change tariff and supplier without any issues, to be honest there is no real benefit other than you have a device telling you when your consuming more power, it’s novelty for a while but you cannot not turn the lights on or the kettle so it just creates anxiety, unless your meter is in such a place you cannot get to it for reading it’s not going to make a huge difference to you

Its helping to improve and modernise our electric monitoring capabilities in the UK.

I would completely agree that the bugs with the first gen ones were bad. But why would you want to carry on taking manual readings in this day and age?

Plus, you're better able to track your consumption if your Bill's are suddenly higher/lower. We identified a faulty hairdryer through it.

It was installed in a couple of hours and it makes our life that little bit easier.

i am worried due to the possibility of changing providers

There were scare stories about the utility companies recruiting inexperienced electricians to deal with a rush of installations, followed by a higher than normal number of house fires that started in the meter area, for which they refused to accept responsibility. The BBC showed one program that was pretty damning.

Add to that, the issue of changing supplier & they stop working, and concerns that their only real use is to analyse consumer usage.

To be accurate, they simply provide the utility co. with data about your usage. They don't save you anything except the rummage in the garage once a quarter.

I don't have any issue reading my meter and I'd just had my house rewired safely and tidily so I didn't see any benefit in them at all.

My main worry is it could end up like the Post Office scenario where the meter could be wrong but there’s no way to challenge it because “computers are never wrong”

Thanks for the messages. The thought of not having to go into the garage for readings is very tempting! There wouldn't be any anxiety as it's not in the house so we wouldn't see it. I imagine everyone will go over to it eventually anyway.

Something to be aware of that when your contract ends and you have not installed a smart meter - only more expensive rtariffs are available to you - looking at EON who are pulling this trick.

Then you try and find an alternative - again very few providers give you the best/cheapest tariff without insisting on a smart meter.

I hate being told what to do. The energy companies are cashing in on a government drive to put a smart meter in every home (why?)

I am resisting having one and searching for the best tariff with any company that does not browbeat you into a new smart meter.
Reading the meter for me is easy - easily accessible and takes at most 5 minutes.

We changed providers this year and had a smart meter fitted by the previous supplier. We had no problems and our new supplier has been able to access the smart meter.

I like our bills to be accurate and I like the real time data that it gives us. It also means we know that we are not going to be stung for a huge bill later on in the year.

Weirdly my Smart Meter got changed to a 2nd Gen one, and since then it does electricity readings no problem but won't read the gas. So I have all the "red light appliances" worry but still have to go to the garage every month to send a reading!
My supplier insists it's not a problem with the installation and won't send a new fitter to investigate. It will be sorted at their end "soon" (they told me in March!)

I have read many stories of ridiculously high bills where customer's seem to have no recourse, suppliers refusing to release customers they deem to be in debit, meters not working for months and months; with empty promises of engineers.
How can you argue against a computer which you have no idea is accurate?

The meter itself is fine, it's the display thing you're meant to plug in inside that annoys me. It tells you what power you're using, which is meant to make you reduce your usage. We are very careful anyway so all it does is tell me the kettle uses loads of power, like it's trying to stop me having a cup of tea! It lives in a drawer now.

Tbh I have one and hardly ever look at it , I’m quite energy efficient I think anyway and it’s higher in winter than summer . It makes no difference I have one or not , you don’t have to have it on show and we’ve put it that it’s not out of sight but unless we go and look we don’t notice iyswim .

@MrsPnut I give my readings by app manually do never get ‘stung by a large bill’ mine are all actual. I don’t need something telling me that my washing machine costs money. We use what we need and don’t leave lights etc on.

I was with eon and they wanted me to have a smart meter. I read their FAQs and it said that if the meter stopped working, it would be the responsibility of the householder to pay to have it mended. So I didn't get one. I don't know if that's still true.
My sister couldn't move providers because no one would accept her new meter.
But maybe everything's better now. It just makes me nervous what wheeze the energy companies will come up with next.

My colleague had no power for 4 days due to a botched installation. Her whole family had to go to a hotel.

I was all for having a smart meter, booked the appointment, then the fitter was unable to put one in because the metal casing around the existing gas meter (from the 30s when the house was built, I assume) is an asbestos risk when tampered with apparently. So that was that.

My energy company is pushing a smart meter at me but tells me as my meters are on two different floors I cannot have one.
One is high up on the first floor, one is in the basement.
I cannot safely reach either as i am disabled. They won't help relocate.

I’ve read articles where people’s boilers have stopped working after having a smart meter installed. That, combined with the stories about not being able to switch providers easily, puts me off having one.

I like to be in control of when I get a bill. So when I give them a manual reading they automatically give me a bill and I can pay it off. So sometimes will do this mid month if money is tight to get it paid

Also when they looked they said they could give us one but it would only work for the electricity. So useless for us.

They lie to get you to fit them. That's enough really.

When we moved into our new house there was a gas leak - turned out it was because the previous owners had had a smart meter fitted and the fitters had done a poor job (apparently they didn't have to do much training to do this) so be careful if you smell gas afterwards!

Our meter cupboard is tiny - it's got two fuseboxes, and the meter in it. You're supposed to have a free gap of 30cm in all directions around the meter so they can fit the smart bit. I found a bit on an old Eon forum where people were posting photos of their meters saying "is there room?" which is exactly what I need but with my electricity company and the new gen ones!